The present invention relates, in general, to computer system assembly and, more particularly, to a fastenerless clip that allows fast simple attachment and removal of system components, such as a rotary fans, to a computer system chassis.
The increasing reliance upon computer systems to collect, process, and analyze data has led to the continuous improvement of the system assembly process and associated hardware.
A typical computer system comprises one or more circuit boards and various semi-autonomous system components such as hard disk drives, peripheral storage devices, and rotary cooling fans. The circuit boards and system components are typically housed together in a housing called a chassis.
With the trend towards smaller and sleeker packaging designs, the positioning of the various circuit boards and system components within the chassis is the subject of much study. Often certain circuit boards and components must be positioned within a predetermined distance of one another to meet electrical cabling specifications. On the other hand, due to the high amount of heat dissipated by the electrical circuit boards and components, a certain amount of airspace must often be maintained between the various circuit boards and components to allow sufficient air flow needed for cooling the components.
Attachment of circuit boards and system components within the chassis is another area of concern. If the computer system is to be mass-produced, considerations for fast, easy assembly must be addressed; accordingly, the circuit boards and system components must be easy to install within a short amount of time. Attachment of the components must be secure and not subject to loosening over time due to system vibration, for example caused by motors and other components with moving parts such as rotary cooling fans. Such loosening results in noise which can interfere with the performance of the system.
One method of attaching system components to a computer chassis is to attach braces onto each side of the component using fasteners. Typically these braces have resilient portions or projections on the side that result in a firm fit between the peripheral and the bay in the computer housing. One example of this method is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,466 to Remise entitled Mounting Device for Detachably Mounting a Plurality of Computer Peripherals.
Another method of securing system components within computer housings is to slide the component in through the front of the bay to secure the peripheral to the computer system. Some techniques for slidably mounting a peripheral device into a computer system are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,319,519 to Sheppard entitled Housing with Latch and Ejection Mechanism Air Portable Hard Disk Drive, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,721 to Seo entitled Device for Securing Peripheral Equipment of Computer.
The above described methods of system component attachment have the disadvantage of requiring fasteners to be inserted into the component itself, and of requiring the components to be compatible with the bracketing method. In addition, the design of the attachment mechanism is complicated, thus requiring more assembly time.
To eliminate some of the assembly time required to mount a system component into a computer system, fastenerless mounting systems have been developed. One fastenerless mounting system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,293 to McAnally entitled Screwless Hard Disk Drive Mounting in a Computer System with a Chassis via a First Bracket Rigidly Mounted to the Chassis and a Second Bracket Movably Mounted to the Chassis. McAnally ""293 describes a bracket system that secures a hard disk drive to a dual leaf spring and bracket combination. The bracket requires that a user position a hard drive in a computer housing and then place a brace over one side of the hard drive.
Another fastenerless mounting system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,297,954 to Seo entitled Peripheral Mounting System For A Computer System. Seo ""954 describes a pair of brace devices to secure a peripheral device to a computer chassis. A brace device, constructed using a first bracket and a second bracket, that is slidably engageable with the first bracket, is inserted between the two lateral faces of the peripheral device and the lateral faces of the bay. The brace devices physically connect to the peripheral device by plugs that are inserted into hollows in the peripheral body to hold it in position and exert a compressive force to further secure the peripheral in position.
An example problematic area for contemporary system component attachment mechanisms is the attachment to the computer chassis of rotary cooling fans used to assist in maintaining an acceptable thermal environment within the bay of the chassis. In order to prevent overheating of the components inside the bay of the chassis, air is typically circulated through the bay of the chassis by the rotary cooling fans. To provide this air circulation, the chassis is generally provided with an air intake opening and an exhaust opening in the walls of the chassis. The air intake opening and exhaust opening are typically located in opposing sidewalls of the chassis. One or more fans are typically located inside the bay of the chassis against the air intake opening such that, when energized, the fans pull air into the bay of the chassis through the air intake opening, and forces it out of the chassis through the exhaust opening, resulting in a cross-flow of air through the inside of the chassis.
Rotary cooling fans are typically attached to the frame of the chassis using screws. Often, in order to reduce noise and the potential for the screws to loosen over time, these screws are insulated from the chassis by rubber grommets and/or push fasteners. This attachment method has the disadvantage of requiring fasteners (i.e., screws and/or push fasteners) to be inserted through the chassis frame and fastened to the component itself. Assembly therefore requires complicated assembly-line equipment to align and insert all of the screws/fasteners and associated insulating components. In addition, when removing the system component, for example for repair, test, or access to circuitry or other system components whose access is blocked by the system component, the design of the fan attachment mechanism results in inconvenient, if not difficult, removal.
To eliminate some of the assembly time required to install system components in the bay of a computer system chassis, it would be desirable to provide a fastenerless mounting system. It would also be desirable to provide such a fastenerless mounting system that allows fast insertion and removal of the system component without requiring any special removal equipment.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved system component mounting system for a computer system.
It is another object to provide a system component mounting system for a computer system that allows fast insertion and removal of the system component without requiring any specialized equipment.
It is still another object to provide a system component mounting system for a computer system that is free from fasteners.
It is yet another object to provide a system component mounting system for a computer system that does not require a large number of components.
To accomplish these and other objects, a system component mounting device is provided in the form of a single clip to secure a system component to a computer chassis. A bay, or recess, is positioned in the chassis to receive the system component. The clip has a body with a bowed resilient portion. The clip also includes at least two tabs protruding in different directions from the clip body that are compressibly insertable into corresponding slots formed in the chassis.
In a preferred embodiment, to secure a system component to the chassis, a first tab of the clip is inserted into a corresponding slot in the frame of the chassis. The system component is positioned between the clip and portion of the chassis to which it is to be attached. The clip is then pivoted in a direction towards the portion of the chassis to which the system component is to be attached. As the clip is pivoted towards the chassis, a second tab on the clip approaches a corresponding second slot in the chassis. In order to position the second tab in its corresponding slot of the chassis to therefore achieve attachment of the system component to the chassis at the designated position in the chassis, the user manually compresses the clip to allow the second tab to clear the edge of the chassis and enter the corresponding second slot of the chassis. Upon removal of the manual compression of the clip, the clip expands, causing the second tab positioned in the corresponding second slot to remain in the slot. Thus, the system component is secured in place by the frictional force between the system component and chassis generated by the compressive force resulting from the bowed resilient portion of the clip against the system component.
In a preferred embodiment, the system component has a plurality of alignment mechanisms formed on the component body to allow complementary alignment mechanisms on the clip and/or chassis face to physically engage the system component to prevent any lateral movement of the system component in any direction parallel to the chassis face. In a preferred embodiment, the system component alignment mechanisms are hollows normally provided by the manufacturer for the insertion of screws. In this preferred embodiment, the clip body is formed with plugs positioned to physically match the position of the hollows on the system component when the system component is properly seated against the clip. Likewise, the portion of the chassis to which the system component is to be attached is formed to provide plugs positioned to physically match the position of the hollows on the system component when the system component is properly seated against the chassis by the clip. The plugs serve to physically hold the system component in position. Thus, the system component is secured in place by plugs that are inserted into hollows in the body of the system component and by the frictional force generated by the compressive force resulting from the resilient portion of the clip.
Furthermore, in the preferred embodiment, the clip body is formed with a component seat for support and alignment of the system component during and after attachment of the system component to the chassis. The component seat is provided on the face of the body that engages the system component. Depending on the application, the component seat may comprise a single or multiple support and/or alignment tabs or walls extending normal to the component contact face of the clip body. Furthermore, the component seat may be integrally formed with the clip body or may be welded, screwed, or otherwise attached to the clip body using known attachment means.